The Alloran Chronicles
by specialk89
Summary: Alloran is given a chance to escape his terrible fate and fix past wrongs, and through the events, begins to change his perspective on war and what makes a good warrior.
1. Chapter 1

This story was originally published on under the user name Emane Kafa. I began this story 3 years ago and recently I've felt the need to revise and continue it, as I feel the Animorphs universe deserves to be expanded upon. Due to my inability to remember my account email address, all future updates will be submitted under this name.

I do not own any of these characters or subjects.

The Alloran Chronicles

Prologue

My name is Alloran Semitur Corass...

BANG!

Shots rang out. I gazed down to see my own blood already pooling below me. My human knees buckled and I fell to the ground. I was lungshot, dead, no, worse, prisoner to the Yeerk, the vile, disgusting abomination that calls itself Visser Three. I've had a lot of failures in my lifetime, but none so colossal as this one. This time the entire Universe along with everything and everyone in it would pay for my failure. You see, as I lie here, waiting for Visser Three to regain control of my body, I am actually a matter of feet, inches maybe, away from redemption. Under a few mounds of earth lies power that could make the Ellimist himself tremble.

Incredible Power.

Ultimate Power

The Time Matrix, **power beyond your imagination. **

It seems that when Elfangor and the human girl escaped from the twisted universe that they along with Visser Three created, Elfangor managed to hide the Time Matrix on Earth.

Elfangor Sirinal Shamtul, a failure to me, his people, and himself, an Andalite with too much compassion for the battlefield. If you asked me if I thought he'd ever even grace the Warrior ranks when I first met him, the answer would be a resounding no, but to his credit, he became a decorated Prince. He has given Earth a fighting chance, and most importantly, he has kept the Time Matrix away from the Yeerks.

Successes and failures, both his and mine, none of it means a thing anymore, irrelevant, it was all irrelevant.

In a few moments Visser Three will have me once again, he will know what I know, he will recover the Time Matrix and the Game will be over. There would be no daring escape, there would be no last minute rescue, I am once again a prisoner to him until the end of my days. I am effectively dead, and because of this, I will now compose my hirac delest, my life story, as is Andalite tradition.

My rise as a hero, and my disgrace in the Hork Bajir wars is well documented, so my story will start not there, but 5 years later, at the grand but unknown battle on the Taxxon Homeworld

I am Alloran Semitur Corass, and this is the rest of my story...

**The Fall of Alloran**

(Hypocrites! You're all hypocrites!) I said to the young aristh in thoughtspeak. You do what must be done in war, the Yeerks know it, and I know it, however this simple fact seemed to have escaped the Electorate, who thought it necessary to disgrace me for trying to end war that has costs thousands upon thousands of lives. Now Aristh Elfangor in is ultimate 'kindness' could not bring himself to destroy a pool of Yeerks, even though he knew the consequences.

He never came close to knowing the consequences, nor did I for that matter.

Myself and a pair of arisths had been given a mission to escort two aliens who call themselves humans, back to their home planet, Earth. The mission however, was delayed when one of the arisths discovered that the Skirt Na Raider that had captured the humans had also unknowingly discovered the Time Matrix. The Time Matrix is a device that can manipulate time and space at the command of the user, fearing that it might fall into the hands of the Yeerks, we followed the Skirt Na ship to the Taxxon home world. The Taxxon are a giant, centipede like species that have been "willfully enslaved" by the Yeerks, a species of parasitic slugs that can take command of other host organisms.

Through a series of events and battles, we discovered the location of the Time Matrix, and were on our way to secure it when we came across a pool of Yeerks that we had encountered earlier. I ordered one of the arisths, Elfangor to destroy them, but he refused, as they were defenseless.

While I was distracted by his failure to comply with my orders, I was struck by one of the humans and with the help of Elfangor himself, I was knocked unconscious. Elfangor was 'safe' for the time being, or so he thought. It had seemed that the two humans, Loren and Chapman, had been infested with Yeerks. These Yeerks took advantage of the situation, apprehending Elfangor. One of them, Sub-Visser 7 as he was called, infested me.

I'll never forget the feeling. I could still see, hear, and feel what was going on around me, but I was suddenly not in control of my body. I had become a slave, and they Yeerks had just won their single greatest intelligence victory.

The rest is history, or rather Yeerk legend. Sub-Visser 7 was hailed as a hero by the his kind and the Council of Thirteen eventually saw fit to grant him the high rank of Visser 3. As for me, I went from being an Andalite hero in his prime, to a disgrace, and finally an abomination. Standing in rank with Seerow as one of the only Princes ever bested by a Yeerk Visser.

Unbeknown to myself and the Visser however, the day would come in which I would be free, at least for a time...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1

Several Years Later...

RING!

The alarm pierced the air. It was time for those brief moments that come along every 3 days. It was time for my tormentor Visser Three, to leave my body and feed on Kadrona rays. Kadrona rays are what keeps a Yeerk alive. They will die of Kadrona Starvation if they don't feed every three days.

Several Hork Bajir gathered around me as Visser Three's slug like body exited though my right ear. Hork Bajir on either side of my grabbed my arms while one behind me detained my deadly Andalite Tail. In my brief moments of freedom, I shifted my stalk eyes around, observing my surroundings. As I swept the area, I caught sight of something amazing. The Hork Bajir detaining my Tail had several scars on his wrists. It may not seem like much, but when your recent existence has been as dreary as mine, it's a golden sliver of hope. A sudden jerk of my tail and I'd be free.

(It's now or never.) I said to myself.

In a quick, upward thrust, my tail broke free and knocked the rear Hork Bajir upside it's head. It was too easy. Next I swung my deadly tail in the direction of the right Hork Bajir. My tail blade severed the tips of his fingers before he could administer a knockout toxin used to put hosts in a deep sleep while their Yeerks feed on Kadrona.

The rush of combat filled my body. It felt so nostalgic, I felt like I'd never even used my tail before, yet it moved like I had used it all my life.

I made a fist with my right hand and struck the remaining Hork Bajir with it. To my surprise, he fell over with little resistance. Visser Three had clearly found more uses for Andalite arms than the Andalite species itself, as my arms were much stronger than I remember.

I swiftly made my way down a corridor, fleeing from the frenzy at the pool. I put my tail blade to my neck, finally, the sweet release of death would end the torture that has been my life, and remove the thorn from the side of every race in the galaxy still fighting for justice.

(No.)

Never did it occur to me in my countless but suppressed thoughts of escape, that I would have a chance survive after freeing myself from my captors. I would have to blend with the Controllers in the underground Yeerk hideout, a monumental task, but less daunting when you have the Andalite morphing technology.

I had two choices, two morphs. I could morph a Hork Bajir, or I could morph a Taxxon. I morphed a Taxxon once long ago, and quickly decided it was something I'd never want to experience again, so the choice was clear.

In moments I was several feet taller with blades everywhere on my body, from on the usual tail, to my shoulders and elbows.

I navigated the underground pool with ease, as I had seen Visser Three and the other Yeerks do several times. I approached the exit, which consisted of a shaft leading to an unassuming two story building on the streets above. I turned the corner to enter the shaft when I was confronted by several Taxxons.

"Hisssssssss!" One of the Taxxons spoke to me using it's various mouth sounds. I didn't hesitate, 1 Hork Bajir against several Taxxons might sound like bad odds, but in reality, all I really had to do was to defeat one of them. One of the Taxxons threw it's body at me.

SLICE

With a quick jerk of my arm, the large blade on my Hork Bajir elbow nearly cut the Taxxon in two. That's when the hunger set it, Taxxons are cannibalistic by nature. They are driven by an undying hunger, even the Yeerks inside them couldn't stop their Taxxon bodies from gathering around their dead comrade to tear him apart and ingest him through their giant red mouths.

I entered the building above and began to demorph. I noticed several insects an arachnids on the floor of the building and scanned the area for a suitable subject. I spotted a rather large arachnid with tiny hairs all over it, I placed my hand on it and began the process of acquiring it for the purpose of morphing.

I began morphing as quickly as possible, I heard footsteps approaching. 5 Hork Bajir Controllers barged into the room just as I had completed the process, they used a various hand signals that I was unfamiliar with and began searching the room. I scurried through the shadows and up a wall. Everything was very dark, there was no windows and only a very small light at the top of the room, I found a set of stairs and began climbing them, not an easy task when you're, well, whatever I had chosen to morph. Two steel doors were at the top, lying parallel to the floor of the room, I saw a tiny opening, sunlight was pouring through. I tried to squeeze through, but it was much too small.

I felt the footsteps of the controllers racing up the stairs, I knew my only chance was to escape through this hole. A terribly sharp pain shot through my body, I managed to push my way through, but in doing so, I had torn off 3 of my 8 legs, and my movement was extremely impaired.

Somehow, perhaps by the grace of an Ellimist, the Hork Bajir Seers, or a primitive human god, I was able to crawl to the back of the building, I had one choice; wait out the controller patrol. Only 10 minutes later did the patrol give up their search, however, it seems like days when you're trapped and panic stricken in a tiny, mangled, arachnid body.

While I waited, I contemplated what I would do once I got out of this mess, I thought of several options, but they all lead back to one solution. I would rendezvous with the "Andalite Bandits", the secret task force of Andalites that survived the crash of the Dome Ship Galaxy Tree, defeated in the space battle that was the Andalite's last ditch effort in stopping the Yeerk invasion of Earth. If I could reach the bandits, we could contact the Andalite fleet and I would tell them everything I had learned and it would be our greatest intelligence victory of all time.

I was filled with relief and ambition, however one thought continued to linger in my brain. My escape seemed far too easy. I caught every break there was to catch. I was detained by an injured Hork Bajir, I managed to stun another with just my bare hands, I was able to escape and morph without being spotted. Even the path to the surface was relatively clear. I began to think powers greater than my own were at work.

These troubling thought began to subside when, at last, the coast was clear. I began to demorph, and enjoy the freedom of the Andalite body that was once mine several years ago.


	3. Chapter 3

As relieved as I was to be free, I was going nowhere fast if I didn't find a place to hide. The lone Sun set on the city in front of me, while a heavily wooded area lay behind me. As children, Andalites would play a game in which several Andalites would hide and a predetermined person would search them out. Recalling my youth is difficult for me these days, but I do remember the thick forests being a popular choice among those hiding, and as I was playing a very deadly game of "hide and seek", the woods behind me was an obvious choice.

I galloped, I ran, I moved as swiftly as my hooves would carry me, there was always the danger of being spotted by a human(controller or otherwise)while in my Andalite form, but truth be told, at this point, I didn't care.

I am by no means a young Andalite, most Andalites my age wouldn't likely be as involved in active combat as I am, but my body is in tremendous physical condition, I hadn't missed a beat since my action in the Hork Bajir wars.

I suppose I have the Visser to thank for my vigor.

Now I faced the most difficult yet of my tasks; locating the Andalite bandits. I had no idea where to begin, the Visser and his Earth invasion army had been looking for months and nothing had turned up. All the brief skirmishes had ended in retreat by one of the two sides. Sometimes the solution to a problem presents itself when you're not looking for it, so I decided I would just think, no direction, no purpose, I would just loose myself in my thoughts.

(Why am I here...)

(What am I fighting for...)

(How did I get here...)

Yes, what exactly happened? How did I end up in this unique situation of situations? How did I go from being an Andalite War-Prince to being fugitive on an alien planet running for my life? One single person, thing, or event had shaped this terrible present that I lived in. The answer seemed painfully obvious, the Quantum Virus. I released the Quantum Virus on the on the Hork Bajir world, it was a last ditch effort, a desperate attempt to save millions that blew up in my face. That blunder put me on par with Seerow as far as the Electorate was concerned. Fools.

As "painfully obvious" as it seemed, that the Quantum Virus had been what sent my life the way of Crangar's victims, I knew that the Quantum Virus wasn't the turning point.

The Time Matrix.

How could I have been so blind? The Quantum Virus Incident is a flicker in the holoscreen compared to the impact of the Time Matrix. If Aristh Arbron hadn't discovered the Time Matrix all those years ago, the worst fate I'd be suffering right now would be being the butt of the jest from some cocky Andalite Prince back on my Dome Ship.

Elfangor, Elfangor used the Time Matrix. Where did he go? When did he go? What did he change? As it was my body that was the instrument of Elfangor's demise, I know first hand that after retrieving the Time Matrix, he went back to our people. Something was wrong though, whatever happened to...

(Loren.) I said to no one but the trees, and unlike my trees, these trees did not speak back.

I could tell that for one reason or another, Elfangor had come to care for the human, but she couldn't have come with him, the Electorate wouldn't have allowed it. I also know that he didn't come back to the Andalites, not at first, if he had done that then they would have the Time Matrix and the war would be over, for better or worse. There must have been an intermediate time and place that Elfangor parted ways, with Loren, and with the Time Matrix. I couldn't begin to guess the time, but the place had to have been Earth. If Elfangor couldn't take Loren with him, he would've at least taken her back to her home.

Now I had a goal at least, find Loren. Finding one human out of billions is pretty tough, but it has got to be easier than finding 6 Andalites among billions of humans, especially when they are trying not to be found.

I took the liberty of acquiring several earth creatures to add to my vast library that now included taxxons, hork bajir, human beings, and countless other beasts from throughout the galaxy that the Visser had managed to subdue throughout his dominance of my body. Once I had selected the appropriate body, I took to the sky.

My avian structure and low bone density made it possible for me to stay vertically suspended in the warm air,as I suspected. The creature I had acquired resembled a kafit, an animal on the Home World which can also fly. Though I was an Andalite on a mission, I took the time to enjoy the freedom that this form forded me, and though morphing for pleasure was discouraged, I indeed took great pleasure in riding the currents, and since I had not reported to the military, or the Electorate in some time, i felt no guilt for doing so.

I had three options, find a Dome Ship, find the Time Matrix, or find Loren. The first was next to impossible, and if the Yeerks or the humans had not yet discovered the Time Matrix, I doubt I'd find it either, though it was the least appealing choice, locating Loren seemed to be my best chance at getting anywhere while I still had my freedom, while I was still significant and could make a difference in this stupid universe. I didn't even know where to begin looking for Loren, and when a warrior finds himself at a dilemma he usually must draw on his skills or his experience, I am very skilled at tracking but I doubted that the ability to distinguish between male and female hoof prints would help here so I again took a moment to collect my thoughts and a single memory floated to the surface of what had become a cesspool of experiences in my mind:

(You're parasites, that is simply all there is too it.) I remarked.

I was a young warrior, a member of an elite team given the exciting task of exploring a new planet and serving as diplomats to it's inhabitants. It was just as honorable as it was boring, so to pass the time, I engaged in arguments with the locals.

"Forrsh tske funal tyyme, bbblotskepcis biffit." Errune 3661 rebutted with his crude Ged mouth. Thankfully the translator chip took over.

"For the final time, both species benefit."

(I fail to see any benefits in losing total control of your own actions.)

"You have to be able to consider more than one point of view, remember, you're dealing with a species unlike any you've ever encountered, you need a new... well, consider this; I've learned quite a bit from my Ged host, we share certain things in common, he, like myself, prefers things at a bit higher temperatures, but he is stuck with the temperature that this planet's suns and air currents dictate, unless he makes a fire. He can't make a fire. He lacks the mental capacity in the same way that I lack the arms, hands, and opposable thumbs, but with our abilities combine, we can make the fire, we live in luxury while our fellow geds and our fellow Yerkes still fall victim to weather patterns."

(I'd freeze in the vacuum of space before 'living in luxury' while my actions were dictated by another, if that is teamwork I want no part of it, I don't care if it can match wits with an Elimist no slug is ever taking my brain.)

"You don't have to be so crass."

(Maybe not, you'll have to forgive me, I'm a bit restless these days.)

"I am soon to identify with that feeling, I must feed on Kadrona soon, which means parting with this magnificent body."

(Yes, I am to return you to your companions in our artificial Kadrona pool, and in three days I shall retrieve you, the Electorate wishes you to report to them as a representative of your Council of Thirteen.)

Three days came and went and I awoke with a dilemma, I was to retrieve Errune 3661 but we had not established any kind of plan for doing so, we had not yet tagged individual Yerkes, and I was still unable to tell one from the other, there would be no way for me to find him in a pool of thousands. Seeing no other option, I did something I hated, I contacting my superior.

(What seems to be the problem?) queried Prince Seerow, and I told him of my problem. (Calm down Alloran, you know where to find him.)

(What do you mean? There are hundreds of them, don't even play like you can tell one from another.)

(I can't, of course, not by their appearance anyway.)

Ah Seerow, Seerow was honest.

(Warrior Alloran, you've been assigned to this Yeerk the past few weeks, what do you know about him.)

(With all due respect we spent most of our time together arguing, we weren't forging life long friendships like you and your assignments.) I quipped, it was disrespectful but I didn't have time respect.

(Sometimes mere exposure to someone tells you more than you know, now, think, where might you find him?)

(Hmm... come to think of it he did mention, more than once I believe, that he preferred his conditions slightly warmer than most Yeerks... the generator! The generator at the back of the Kadrona pool, it's probably warmer closer to the generator.)

Sure enough only a few of the thousands of Yeerks gathered close to the generator, and through trial and error, we found my assignment in a matter of minutes.

Seerow was wise.

At the end of the day, I was debriefed on the escort of my assignment to report to the Electorate. All the formalities had been exchanged and I was about to exit the command center when I turned to Prince Seerow.

(The Yeerk, my assignment, he described his clumsy ged host as 'magnificent'.) I said.

(Well to one in his position its probably quite the upgrade.) Seerow responded.

(That's just it, if the Yeerk see geds as some sort of prized resource, then you can't tell me that they haven't already begun setting their sights on our graceful Andalite bodies.)

(Alloran, you've learned so much so very quickly, you're a great student and a tremendous warrior, but you've still yet to learn one thing, and that troubles me.)

(What might that be?)

(Trust.)

Seerow was an idiot. It was Seerow's Trust, Seerow's Kindness that opened the floodgates and started this horrendous war.

Still though, he helped me find my assignment, sometimes we know more about someone than we remember, and perhaps I could again apply that lesson to help me find Loren. What did I know about her? Her name, not even her surname her face, but I doubt I'd recognize it at this point, her family...

Her father. She had said her father was a soldier, a veteran of the Vietnam war if I remember correctly. It was quite a tragic war if my... the Visser's education on Earth held up. I also knew that veterans in this country along with their families received some degree of government assistance, Though computers were a relatively new advancement, humans were not shy about using them for important things, and I had no doubt that information about this assistance program was stored on some sort of computer.

Amazing really, how fast humans went from developing the combustion engine to developing vast networks of computers, the advancement of user interface happened shockingly fast, perhaps they were given some sort of assistance...


	4. Chapter 4

I made my way to an alley, where in the cover of night, I found it easy to demorph without being seen. I was surrounded by retail stores, all of which were closed, humans seem to have an affinity for shopping, not at night time however. I once again took my arachnid form and made my way into a large blue and yellow building via one of several small openings in the back, once inside I noticed several displays.

A sign that said "iPod" hung over several hundred small black boxes. I had no idea what an 'iPod' was but I did know that the youths at the school one of the Visser's vile yeerk comrades(and it's equally vile host Hedrick Chapman) had been assigned to monitor, seemed to be quite fond of them. In any case, I didn't need an 'iPod', I needed a computer. Most of the computers I saw were rather large, clunky looking beige or black boxes attached to large screens, I would not be able to take these with me. I demorphed to get a better look at the room with my Andalite eyes(and also to 'disable' the security cameras by way of my tail.) My stalk-eyes scanned the room and eventually fell on a thin, black, esthetically pleasing device consisting of a type pad and a screen that hinged from the base.

(Perfect).

Several minutes went by and I finally managed to liberate the computer from the restraints holding it down.

CRASH!! The glass panes at the front of the large room shattered behind me, my stalk eyes spun to reveal 3 dark, 7 foot figures.

"Andalite!!" One screamed. They leaped over the partitions at the front of the store and began charging at me with dracon beams drawn. Hork-Bajir controllers, the Yeerks had been tracking me.

"Surrender!" The apparent leader shouted at me. I was outnumbered, a fight was not wise in my unarmed position. Without hesitation, I grabbed an 'iPod' from the display on my right, they raised their dracons and took aim...

(Not so fast!) I said, trying to sound as confident as I could. (I've got this whole place wired to blow!)

"You lie!"

(Do I? Take another step and find out! I was going to destroy this place anyway, to cover my tracks, now I planned to be far far away first, but I'd just as soon do it right here if the alternative is infestation by you disgusting slugs!) I stared down as they considered what I had just said. It was working! I stood bold, my thumb on the 'iPod', poised to disintegrate the entire store.

Hork-Bajir controllers are aware of only Hork-Bajir customs, had it been humans that attacked me, they likely would've called my bluff.

(Heres the deal, if you ever want to make it back to your filthy yeerk pool and feed on precious kadrona again, you'll put down those dracons.) They complied and bent their tall frames down to lower their weapons. I used my strong arm to throw the 'iPod' at the leader and in his moment of shock I galloped over and struck him with the blunt side of my tail.

SSSLLICCEE!! I slashed a second hork-bajir and a mix of blood and innards ran out from him, the third grabbed his dracon beam, his hand was still clutched onto it as he was left staring at a bloody stump of a wrist.

I grabbed my computer and fled the building as swiftly as my hooves would carry me, once outside I ran around the back where I had initially entered the building and slid the computer under a large, green container. I once again morphed into my arachnid, it was becoming more and more useful in a world in which it pays to for someone like me to be small and unnoticed. I would likely have to wait until daybreak before I could leave my cover and attempt to access the Internet.

If you're not familiar, the Internet is a phrase that humans use to describe the massive network of computers that interact with each other on a worldwide scale. It is quite the useful tool but unfortunately having a computer isn't enough, it seems several companies have restricted access to this network rather than making it publicly accessible, so finding a way to get my information may prove difficult.

The night came and went and with the rise of the sun, I was ready to continue my quest. Whilst in a human morph, equipped with my computer, I began asking humans I made contact with how I might go about accessing the Internet.

"I don't have time for this..."

"Buzz off!"

"Are you serious man? Get with the times!"

I received a broad array or responses, none of which proved to be any use until a young woman pointed me in the direction of a "Wi Fi cafe", which turned out to be a small building where I could access the Internet. Humans have a habit of creating buzz words to describe every exceedingly simple concept they can think of.

I entered the building, which was inhabited with several young men and women wearing dark clothing with unnatural looking hair colors. I choose a spot in a quiet corner where my research would not be disturbed. Within a matter of minutes I had accessed the military pensions database. I knew that Loren's father fought in Vietnam and he was not killed in the war, beyond that I had no further qualifiers. I had several hours of tedious research ahead of me, interrupted by the frequent breaks I had to take to morph and demorph to avoid becoming a nothlit in this clumsy human body.

After some time I discerned the information I was looking for. I discovered Loren's identification information and pulled her file from another database. I was able to determine her location and much to my surprise, she resided relatively close to my location. Before immediately rushing out to detain her however, I discovered something in her file that caught my eye.

Known Relatives

Son: Tobias

Spouse: Alan Fangor(deceased)

I made the sound that humans call a gasp.

Incredulous. I could not merely be a coincidence. The Andalites never received the Time Matrix because Elfangor never used it to return to them. He came here rather, to Earth, to start a life with Loren. I sensed a growing fondness between the two in the short time in which I knew them, but this was an outcome that no Andalite could have predicted.


	5. Chapter 5

They say that Andalite warriors can never truly know love. Love is said to belong to the scientists and artisans of our society. Sure an Andalite female may be briefly intrigued by the distant heart of a warrior, or have a fleeting attraction to a bold and cocky pilot, but it is not to last. I myself discovered this adage to be wholly untrue. Elfangor too had allegedly found love, unconventional as it may be.

As a young Prince I was interested in adventure and heroics. The ideas of passion and romance did not evoke excitement in me but as many have likely found, my true love had a way of changing many feelings I'd thought would be ingrained in me forever.

-

Several years ago I found myself a newly christened Prince in the halls of the Electorate. It was a time of crisis, the Yeerks had just secured millions of taxxon to be used as controllers and they were setting their sights on a new race.

(Through my plan we should be able to deceive the Yeerks and ascertain the location of their next invasion and send a strike force to cut them off.) I proposed, trying to sound confident and mask my anxieties.

I had finally attained the rank of Prince and was ready to finally start making a difference. My plan was to leak a message to the Yeerks from an anonymous race saying that that I heard the news of the deal the Yeerks had made with the taxxons and that my race was interested in a similar arrangement. I would then invite them to meet on an uninhabited planet and set up an ambush.

(Prince Alloran.) began one of the Junior Electorate Members, (What makes you so sure that the Yeerks won't arrive in large enough numbers to pose a significant challenge to your strike force?)

(If we are to believe our intelligence, the Yeerks have already selected a new target for takeover and a majority of their forces should be preparing for that invasion.) I reasoned. (The Yeerks we encounter should be in small enough numbers to subdue. Following this we shall threatened them with Kadrona starvation and they should reveal the location of their next invasion rather willingly.)

After a bit of coaxing, the Electorate approved my mission under the condition that my team be accompanied by a scientist. A young female biologist by the name of Jahar who was to study the Yeerks that we apprehended. I reluctantly agreed and set out to brief my team on the mission.

-

I unveiled a large container of stout, hairless creatures.

(These as you probably recognize, are vharwals, a species native to our planet. We will all acquire the vharwal morph and disguise ourselves for when the Yeerk scout team arrives. We will use these modified translators to create the illusion of sentience.)

One by one my team came up to acquire the morph. I was about to dismiss everyone when I noticed Jahar acquiring the morph.

(What do you think you're doing?) I asked.

(Acquiring the morph Prince Alloran.) she respond confidently.

(Oh that won't be necessary, you won't be present for the apprehension, I think us warriors can handle it.) I quipped, and the rest of the team joined me in a laugh.

Several days later we arrived on the uninhabited planet and prepared for the meeting. I was relieved when I saw only Yeerk ship approach from the distance. The ship landed and several controllers exited the ship, taxxons and geds, as I had anticipated.

I approached and greeted them and after many minutes of negotiations, I suggested one of the controllers try a trial infestation on one of the vharwals I had brought with me. I stepped over to wrangle one of them to be used for the infestation when it dawned on me. The Yeerks think vharwals are sentient and if one did not willingly present itself for infestation, they would discoverer that they are not sentient and that the vharwals they had been talking to are none other than Andalite warriors in a morph.

I froze, I didn't know what to do. Luckily just as I sensed the controllers getting suspicious, one of my men in morph stepped forward and offered himself for infestation. As the controllers gathered around, curious to see the results, I gave the order for my men to demorph and the Yeerks were captive before they knew it.

I moved over to commend the warrior who had offered himself for infestation but as the vharwal demorphed the four eyes starring back at me were none other than the smirking irises of Jahar. I think that was the first time in my life that I was ever truly humbled and on that day I fell in love with Jahar's beauty and cunning.

-

I began to lose myself in thoughts of Jahar but eventually I came crashing back down to reality. I had to find Loren. The fate of the free galaxy depended on it and I couldn't be bogged down by thoughts of the past. Even so, I found that remembering Jahar gave me a new sense of purpose in mission. I knew it was probably the slim possibility of holding her in my arms again that kept me from taking my own life in the tunnels of the Yeerk pool.

I couldn't allow myself to be lost in thoughts of her, however I mustn't allow myself to forget her either. It was a delicate line I toed and I struggled with this as I made my way in human morph to the building where Loren lived.

It was night time again when I finally made my way to the tall, decrepit building which the computer had told me housed Loren. My choices seemed clear, I could sneak in using a morph, or knock on the door and request to see her, as is human custom.

I did neither.

I closed my eyes and searched my mind and heart for her presence and when I found her I transmitted a thoughtspeak message.

(Loren... don't be afraid... do you know who this is?)


	6. Chapter 6

I searched for a connection with her, but I sensed reluctance. I pushed open the door of the building. The inside was a hollow, partially burnt shell. I moved past several apartments – a term humans have for above ground scoops – and up a flight of stairs. It became apparent to me that she was alone in this building and so I made a bold but rewarding decision.

I demoprhed.

My hooves carried me down a long hallway with various rooms. I darted my stalk eyes back and fourth searching the many doorways. Eventually I stumbled upon a frightened female human cowering underneath a table.

(Loren.) I called, cause her to shudder.

(Do you remember who I am.)

"Stop it! Leave me alone!" The female exclaimed.

(My name is Alloran, I am an Andalite War Prince.)

"I know what you are! Leave me alone! Stay in my nightmares where you belong!"

(Nightmares? I'm not sure I understand.)

"What do you want from me?" She asked. The question had caught me off guard. I was exactly sure myself. Now that I had found Loren, I didn't really know how she could help me. Perhaps I was only searching for familiarity.

I wanted to start asking questions but my hearts began to sink into my hooves. My presence was only worsening this poor woman's deteriorated mental condition.

"I'm crazy... I'm crazy!" Loren said, confirming my suspicions.

As bad as felt, I pressed on. (Loren, listen to me, I need to know what happened to Elfangor.)

"Oh, I see how it is, is this some kind of trick? You've talked with my therapist haven't you? That bastard!"

(I'm...)

"He told you all about everything. My crazy fantasies of imaginary Andalites and my hero Elfangor!"

(Fantasies? Imaginary? Loren, I'm an Andalite, I'm standing right in front of you.)

But she couldn't see me. She was blind. A poetic condition for someone who had spent her life seeing things she couldn't believe.

(I think I understand.) I said calmly.

Humans can sometimes suffer from a condition called Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. They typically respond by finding unique and unhealthy ways to cope following traumatic incidents. Loren told us first hand that her father suffered from it following the war. His way of coping was escapism, running away. Loren had apparently been coping with her space adventure and the subsequent loss of Elfangor in another way. She had convinced herself that it was a dream, or that she was insane.

I felt that if I explained everything to her, she would just shrug it off as insincere. Lucky for me however, Andalites have a way of explaining things that goes far beyond words.

I placed my hand on her forehead.

"Hands off me you creep!"

She grabbed my arm and tried to resist but in a moment I calmed her by putting her in a morphing trance. Following this I transmitted several images and experiences into her mind. I reconstructed her broken memory of the events that transpired on the taxxon home world. I gave her my memories of enslavement to the Visser and my subsequent emancipation.

A single tear trickled down her face.

"Alloran... what happened to him?" she asked.

(Loren... Elfangor is dead. The Visser killed him, using my own body.)

"No!" She broke down. I felt like consoling her but I didn't know what to do. "He just disappeared one day without a trace, what happened?"

(He returned to our people Loren.)

"He... left me?"

(Yes, he had a role to play in this war.) I explained, though at the time I didn't know just how right I was. (I think he'd want you to know that he spent his final moments here on Earth, defending it from the Yeerks.)

She looked past me with here mysterious but broken eyes.

(You're people are in danger Loren. My people are in danger. I need you to tell me what happened to the Time Matrix after you returned to Earth.)

"I'm not going to let you use it. Elfangor and I agreed on that, it is too dangerous to be used."

(The human race is on the brink of total enslavement. The Yeerks are already here, they're invading and your people don't even know it. I need to use the Time Matrix, and I need you to come with me.)

"Why do you need me?"

(You've used the Time Matrix before, you have a delicate understanding of how it works.)

"I can't leave here! I have... I have a son..."

Loren's son, I read about him in the file. It became clear to me that Elfangor lived a full fledge live here before returning to the Andalites. He even had a son with Loren. He must have acquired a human morph and lived a normal human life.

(Your son needs you to fight for him. He needs you to come with me. You can do more for him by coming with me than you ever could staying here.)

She wept and then paused for a very long time. She knew I was right.

"They don't even let me see him anymore... there is nothing for me here."

I reached out my hand.

(Will you come with me then? Will you be this universe's last hope for freedom?)

She took my and and stood up.

"Yes."

-

"Screeeeech!!" A terrible sound pierced the air. My knees buckled and Loren collapsed back to the ground. Three humanoid beings with cracked red and black skin materialized in the apartment.

(YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN BEND THE RULES WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE?) said a voice that sliced into my thoughts over the unbearable howl of the three beasts.

I readied my tail for combat as these Howlers advanced.

-

AN: You may notice that I took some creative liberties with Loren. I know according to the books she doesn't remember the events of the Andalite Chronicles but you'll just have to trust that I'll find a way to make it all work out.


End file.
